Organic Trade Association honors 11 industry leaders

The Organic Trade Association (OTA) honored 11 organic industry leaders Sept. 14 during its annual leadership awards event at Organic Week 2026 in Washington, D.C., recognizing recipients in Organic Leadership and Organic Lifetime Achievement categories.

George and Dora McClelland of McClelland Dairy Farm were named Organic Farmers of the Year. Their fourth-generation Sonoma, California, dairy began transitioning to organic production in 2002 and shipped its first organic milk in 2003. The farm uses pasture-based practices and has participated in restoration and conservation projects focused on water quality, wildlife habitat and carbon sequestration.

Other Organic Leadership honorees were Kendra Klein, director of science and agroecology at Friends of the Earth, for Organic Environmental Leadership; Mike Dill of Organically Grown Company for Organic Trailblazer; and Marlon Foster, founder of Green Leaf Learning Farm and its parent organization, Knowledge Quest, for Organic Social Impact.

Foster’s Green Leaf Learning Farm in Memphis, Tennessee, has operated as an organic specialty crop farm since 2012. The project transformed 30 formerly vacant lots and four abandoned structures into a USDA Certified Organic farm operation with an onsite processing facility and organic grocery market.

OTA also presented Organic Lifetime Achievement awards to Amy’s Kitchen co-founders Andy and Rachel Berliner; Katherine DiMatteo of DiMatteo Consulting; Maria Rodale of Rodale Institute; Walter Robb of Stonewall Robb Advisors; and Bill Wolf of Wolf Associates.

“The unwavering commitment of this group of accomplished leaders symbolizes the passion and deep expertise within the organic sector,” Matthew Dillon, OTA co-CEO, said.